Cody Roberts is accused of hitting a young wolf with a snowmobile, taping its jaw shut and showing it off at a bar in the western Wyoming town of Daniel.

PINEDALE, WYO., — The Wyoming man who allegedly snowmobiled into a wolf and then brought it into a western Wyoming bar for hours to amuse friends and family will fight his felony charge, sending one of the country’s highest-profile animal cruelty cases in years toward a trial.

Appearing virtually before Sweetwater County District Court Judge Richard Lavery on Monday afternoon, Cody Roberts told the judge he understood the charges being brought against him, which Lavery read from an amended indictment.

Roberts “knowingly and with intent to cause undue suffering” … “tortured or tormented” a “male gray wolf,” the judge read from the charging document.

“How do you plead?” Lavery asked.

“Not guilty,” Roberts said.

Sublette County Prosecuting Attorney Clayton Melinkovich, who spearheaded the case against Roberts, did not speak in any depth about his case or foreshadow his legal arguments.

On Feb. 29, 2024, Roberts brought the injured wolf into the Green River Bar in Daniel and allegedly tormented the muzzled animal for hours. The longtime resident, who owns a trucking business, was drinking and made a joke out of the wolf’s plight, according to an eyewitness. But the young wolf’s languid behavior suggested that it was suffering from massive internal injuries after reportedly being legally struck with a snowmobile until it was “barely conscious,” according to state officials.

The resulting outrage was intense, inflamed both by photos that emerged from the night and the Wyoming Game and Fish Department’s initial response. Wardens fined him $250 for possession of warm-blooded wildlife instead of forcing him to make a mandatory court appearance and face possible stiffer penalties.

By mid-April 2024, Robert’s treatment of the wolf had drawn intense scorn and indignation, which filtered in from around the world. The online outrage was so overwhelming that the state of Wyoming had to cease tourism promotion on its social media channels.

Monday’s arraignment was the first time that Roberts had publicly addressed his actions. WyoFile has made repeated attempts to interview him without success.

During his Monday arraignment, neither Roberts, nor his attorney, Piper, spoke about the events from spring 2024.

Shortly after the treatment of the wolf blew up in the media, Sublette County law enforcement officials made it clear they disagreed with Game and Fish’s interpretation of Wyoming’s animal cruelty statutes. The state agency maintained that those laws — which carry more severe penalties — didn’t apply because of the wolf’s “predatory animal” status. The county opened its own probe that stayed active for more than a year, examining whether Roberts should be charged with felony animal cruelty.

Ultimately, Melinkovich turned the decision to indict Roberts over to a grand jury — a rarely used tool in the state court system that gave the county attorney subpoena power and the ability to examine witnesses who weren’t otherwise willing to testify.

The grand jury proceedings last summer occurred behind closed doors and all associated records are sealed. On Aug. 20, the 12-person panel returned a “true bill” resulting in the indictment against Roberts, charging him with a felony that could carry up to two years in jail.

The county’s prosecuting attorney did not ask Lavery that Roberts be booked into custody, nor did he ask that Roberts post a monetary bond to remain out of jail.

“I see no concerns with Mr. Roberts not remaining or returning to the area to face these charges at trial,” Melinkovich said.

Roberts’ trial is scheduled for 9 a.m. March 9.

Although the first step in the felony charges against Roberts was held virtually, a video feed of the proceedings was streamed at the Sublette County District Court.

Only five people were present in the room, and four of them were journalists. The only other member of the public who showed up was Peggy Bell, who said she was Robert’s middle school librarian.

“I support Cody 100%,” Bell said.

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CASPER, Wyo. — The 11-year federal sentence for a Gillette man convicted of meth distribution is among the sentences rendered in District of Wyoming federal courts last month, according to a release Tuesday by the U.S. Justice Department.

Jonathan Dennis Roberts, 41, and Sarah Louise Hutchinson, both of Gillette, were busted coming back from Colorado last year with about 0.83 pounds of methamphetamine, according to case documents. Hutchinson is set for sentencing on Dec 4. More on that case can found here.

Below are summaries of the drug and firearm cases that went to sentencing last month, as provided by the U.S. Justice Department.

On Feb. 11, 2025, staff at a Sheridan motel located alerted law enforcement after finding about 0.71 pounds of methamphetamine under the bedsheets in a room rented by Sheridan resident Kolter Kekich and his dating partner, according to the release. 

Later that day, Wyoming DCI agents and the Sheridan Police Department tried to arrest Kekich, who fled and led police on a high-speed pursuit that ended in a wreck. 

“While refusing to exit his vehicle after the wreck, the defendant began to consume large amounts of drugs resulting in an overdose,” the release said. Law enforcement located additional drugs, drug paraphernalia and $1,360 inside the vehicle. 

Kekich, 30, was sentenced on Oct. 28 to 120 months’ imprisonment with four years of supervised release to follow by U.S. District Court Judge Alan B. Johnson in Cheyenne. He pleaded guilty on Aug. 8 to possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.  

Scott VanGoethen, 54, of Cheyenne, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to leading a large-scale methamphetamine distribution ring and illegally possessing 15 firearms.

Investigators discovered VanGoethen was driving to Colorado to obtain significant quantities of methamphetamine, which he then sold to his neighbors. The neighbors were involved in distributing the drug further. More on that case can be found here.

Lyman resident Robert Alexander, 43, was sentenced to 121 months’ imprisonment with four years of supervised release to follow for aiding and abetting in the distribution of methamphetamine and being a felon in possession of a firearm. 

DCI agents got about 1.36 pounds of methamphetamine over six controlled buys from Alexander’s co-conspirator, identified in the indictment as Shaleen Ungircht, between August and December 2024. A search of Alexander and Ungircht’s residence “uncovered large quantities of methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia, firearms, and ammunition,” the release said.  

Alexander was indicted on May 21 and pleaded guilty on Aug. 25. U.S. District Court Judge Scott W. Skavdahl imposed the sentence on Oct. 2 in Casper.

Gillette resident Christopher Dakota Daniel Pierce, 39, was sentenced to 37 months’ imprisonment with three years of supervised release to follow for being a felon in possession of a firearm. 

On Jan. 9, 2025, Campbell County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to Pierce’s residence for a domestic disturbance, the release said. On scene, deputies received consent to search the home and ultimately located six firearms that Pierce, a previously convicted felon, had access to. Pierce was indicted on May 21 and pleaded guilty on July 18. Chief U.S. District Court Judge Kelly H. Rankin imposed the sentence on Oct. 15 in Cheyenne. 

Evans, Colorado, resident Jade Mikel Shane, 46, was sentenced to 168 months’ imprisonment with five years of supervised release for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. In February 2024, Wyoming DCI agents began an investigation into drug trafficking in Sheridan and Campbell counties. 

“Through the investigation, agents learned the defendant used his residence as a storage and distribution hub for large quantities of methamphetamine and fentanyl,” the release said. A search warrant executed on Sept. 5, 2024, led to the seizure of significant amounts of controlled substances and numerous firearms. 

DCI worked with a task force in Weld County, Colorado on the case. Shane was indicted on Jan. 15 and pleaded guilty on June 5. U.S. District Judge Scott W. Skavdahl imposed the sentence on Oct. 8 in Casper.

Related

A massive power outage that affected approximately 95,000 customers in Wyoming and South Dakota Thursday is believed to be the result of two tripped 500-kilovolt transmission lines near Medicine Bow according to Western Area Power Administration Public Affairs Specialist Stephen Collier. The tripped lines caused an unusual voltage event that set off a cascade of other tripped lines resulting in the rolling power outages throughout the Cowboy State and western South Dakota.

Areas in Wyoming affected by the outage Thursday included, but were not limited to, Sheridan, Buffalo, Gillette, Newcastle, Glenrock, and Casper. The county-wide outage in Sheridan County prompted emergency management officials to open the Sheridan County Fairgrounds Exhibit hall as a temporary warming center and shelter for those without power.

There was also a fire Thursday at the Dave Johnston coal-fired power plant near Glenrock. Wyoming Department of Homeland Security Director Lynn Budd said the fire at the power plant occurred after the outages began. It is uncertain at this time if the outages caused the fire at the power plant.